Solomon Islands

On Sunday, Prime Minister Scott Morrison makes his first overseas trip since his upset victory in Australia’s general election earlier this month. His first stop will be in Honiara, the capital of the Solomon Islands.

Six weeks after a ship grounded on a reef in the southern Solomon Islands, salvers have finally managed to stop an oil leak that threatens a UNESCO World Heritage site. At least 60 tons of heavy fuel oil gushed into the water off Rennell Island in what is being described as the worst environmental disaster in the country’s history.

The long running division in the Melanesian Spearhead Group has erupted into public. Senior officials in the Solomon Islands and Fiji have attacked each other over the issue of West Papua. We have details from Neal Conan in today’s Pacific New Minute.

The reshuffle of the government of the Solomon Islands is now complete. Parliament elected a new prime minister, who immediately declared that he plans to continue the policies of his predecessor, who was ousted last week in a vote of no confidence. Neal Conan explains in today’s Pacific News Minute.

There will be a new government in the Solomon Islands. Yesterday, Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare was defeated in a vote of no confidence amid allegations of corruption, nepotism and failure to consult with his colleagues. We have more from Neal Conan in today’s Pacific News Minute.

A project to lay an undersea cable between Australia and the Solomon Islands has been delayed, first because of security concerns, and now, charges of bribery. Both revolve around the selection of a controversial Chinese contractor. We have details from Neal Conan in today’s Pacific News Minute.

This week, the government of the Solomon Islands established a National Park at Bloody Ridge, where American and Japanese troops fought during the Battle for Guadalcanal, which began 75 years ago. The government hopes the National Park will help draw both Japanese and American visitors. We have more from Neal Conan in today’s Pacific News Minute.

Earlier this month, Solomon Islands and many Pacific Island Nations celebrated the success of RAMSI, the multi-national force that just concluded a 14 year mission to restore order in the Solomons. Vanuatu’s delegate to the ceremony, Deputy Prime Minister Joe Natuman, called for the Pacific Islands Forum to establish a standing force on the RAMSI model. We have more from Neal Conan in today’s Pacific News Minute.

Fireworks, parades and services of thanksgiving in the Solomon Islands this week, as RAMSI comes to an end after 14 years. The Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands arrived amid tribal warfare and governmental collapse in 2003. As we hear from Neal Conan in today’s Pacific News Minute, it’s now regarded as a model for regional peacekeeping.

At an ecumenical service outside Honiara yesterday, Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare praised RAMSI in biblical terms: “Yes, the Divine intervention to our call for help is RAMSI,” he said.

Fourteen years after the government of the Solomon Islands nearly collapsed amid ethnic violence, the country’s police force is about to be rearmed. Regional peacekeepers are scheduled to withdraw next June, which will leave the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force fully responsible for law and order. We have more from Neal Conan in today’s Pacific News Minute.

While maritime border claims from half a dozen countries continue to raise tensions in the South China Sea, one long running dispute in the Pacific was resolved earlier this month when Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands signed a treaty after 32 years of negotiations. We have details from Neal Conan in the Pacific News Minute.

A study in the Solomon Islands by researchers from Australia found that five small islands have vanished, while six others lost significant acreage due to sea level rise. The authors say it's the first scientific confirmation of the dramatic impact of climate change...we have more, from Neal Conan in the Pacific News Minute.

Across the Pacific, many island nations struggle with issues of sovereignty. Just this week we reported on the arrest of dozens in Fiji who allegedly planned to set up a breakaway state. Now the leader of the provincial government on one of the Solomon Islands says he plans to establish a sovereign nation, but not an independent one. An explanation, from Neal Conan in the Pacific News Minute.